A little bird is flying in the forest. Suddenly he sees a great fire below, raging out of control. "My home!" he cries, and flies to the lake to gather a beak full of water. Flying back to the fire, he drops his little bundle of water onto the inferno, then races back to the lake. Over and over he repeats the gesture until he becomes so exhausted, he falls into the fire and dies.
Is this a beautiful story or a sad story for you?
I used to be a professional Big Mountain skier- basically I jumped off cliffs and skied you-fall-you-die exposures around the world for cameras. Now I facilitate the intersection of sport, adventure and Infinite wisdom in clinics called Ski to Live and in private sessions. In sports- we have exhilarating moments, sure, flying around our own forest, yet like the bird we also struggle- through injury, through disappointment, through aging, for our entire lives. I know as I get older and nurse my ski injuries, my new goal as an athlete is to get worse at my sport every year, yet be ok with it. I continue pouring beakfuls of water on such fires, daily.
What if this story were made into a movie? Most of us love sad movies, eh? They're familiar. They move us, comfort us, make the struggle of being a human being seem more touching. Perhaps if we see this story as a sad movie, it won't seem sad, it'll seem beautiful. Graceful. Like a kitten struggling for it's first breath. Like an athlete struggling to learn some hard lessons.
I love the hard lessons, maybe more than the easy lessons. I love fighting the fire. That’s why I prefer vacations that help me explore my own existence. The challenges and sadness of life make me feel the most alive and curious.
That's a movie worth watching...
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